There has been no shortage of speculation this offseason on the availability of Boston Red Sox outfielder Yoenis Cespedes, both in the national media and on this site. But as of right now, it does not appear Cleveland and Boston line up as trade partners. Last week, Fangraphs’ Dave Cameron proposed a three-team trade involving the Mariners to move Cespedes, but as Jim Piascik writes, a three-team trade involving Cleveland instead of Seattle could lead Cespedes to the corner of Carnegie and Ontario instead.

December already! Where does the time go? In this MLB News and Notes segment, the IBI's Andrew Zajac will be giving occasional reports on the latest news and rumors throughout the MLB. Today's piece focuses on Nelson Cruz heading to Seattle, two teams in "serious" pursuit of Andrew Miller, Bryce Harper heading towards a grievance, and more.

As many saw on Friday, the Athletics dealt Josh Donaldson to the Blue Jays and like a lot of Indians fans, the IBI's Tony Lastoria came away less than impressed with the haul the Athletics got in return for Donaldson and was disappointed the Indians were not in on the action to land him. While Tony believes Donaldson was the perfect fit for the Indians, he wonders if the Indians were even a perfect fit with the Athletics. He also talks about the rebirth of Nick Hagadone and the Indians strength in left-handed relief options, the problems big spending can create and more.

As the 2014/2015 offseason continues one item the Indians could look to add is a veteran starting pitcher to stabilize the starting rotation. This of course would mean one of their current starters is used in a trade to fill a need elsewhere on the roster. The IBI's Kevin Sledz looks at some options the Indians could turn to in free agency or with a trade to fill a rotation need if one of their current starters departs in a trade.

The Browns play in Buffalo this afternoon! Will they keep their playoff hopes alive? In this MLB News and Notes segment, the IBI's Andrew Zajac will be giving occasional reports on the latest news and rumors throughout the MLB. Today's piece focuses on the possibility of Jeff Samardzija becoming a member of the Chicago White Sox, what the Athletics could do to fill their need at shortstop, a possible trade partner with the Indians, and more.

This past week in Major League Baseball we have seen some big signings with Pablo Sandoval, Hanley Ramirez and Adam LaRoche going to new teams. Also, there is lots of trade buzz around the league, and one that is particularly interesting to the IBI's Sam Camp is Justin Upton. He talks about how he would like to see the Indians acquire Upton and fortify the middle of their lineup.

So far in his offseason series, the IBIs Hayden Grove has concentrated on keeping things within the Indians organization. All of the necessary steps he has outlined for the Indians to make a run at the 2015 World Series have involved players currently under contract with the Indians in one way or another. But all of that changes in today's piece as he shifts his focus toward a few players outside the organization which he things can help them next season.

An often repeated phrase surrounding Cleveland baseball over the past two decades regards how poor the organization has fared in the draft. But exactly how bad has Cleveland been? And how do they stack up against the rest of baseball? Join Jim Piascik as he continues his series of analyzing Cleveland’s draft history with the 2002 draft, another surprisingly decent draft class that was messed up down the road, not on the day of the draft itself.

Happy Thanksgiving! While everyone gets set to gobble down some turkey it is time to recap all the news and notes from around baseball on Wednesday. The Indians are looking for some bats, the Yasmany Tomas show has arrived in Arizona, several shortstops are being coveted in the trade market, and much more. The IBI's Tony Lastoria recaps it all...

The Indians are considering a lot of options this offseason with changing the roster to improve it for next season. One thing they are considering is going outside the organization for help at third base both offensively and defensively, and apparently they have a good amount of interest in free agent Chase Headley. The IBI's Tony Lastoria talks about the Headley news and runs down all the news and rumors from around baseball on Tuesday.

A lot of attention is on the Red Sox at the moment after their blockbuster free agent signings of Hanley Ramirez and Pablo Sandoval on Monday. The Red Sox are still looking to add more pieces through free agency, but suddenly the focus around baseball is who they may trade in the wake of their spending spree. With a surplus of outfielders there is talk they may trade Yoenis Cespedes, and the IBI's Tony Lastoria believes he would be a perfect fit for the Indians.

The hot stove league is already warm and is only going to get hotter. While Indians fans would like to see the front office add a big bat like Nelson Cruz or a front line starting pitcher like Jon Lester or James Shields, the chances of that happening are very remote. With that in mind the IBI's Sam Camp takes a look at some free agent pitchers and position players who may fit what the Indians are looking for this offseason.

Are you ready for Thanksgiving? In this MLB News and Notes segment, the IBI's Andrew Zajac will be giving occasional reports on the latest news and rumors throughout the MLB. Today's piece focuses on the Red Sox bolstering their offense with two big signings, the Mariners signing their star third baseman to an extension, where Cole Hamels could land, and more.

At the moment the Indians opening day five-man rotation is set to be Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, Danny Salazar, Trevor Bauer and T.J. House. Barring an injury this spring or a very surprising trade of one of them this offseason, the rotation is about as set as it can be at this point in the offseason. But what if a few of them struggle early next season? The IBI's Tony Lastoria discusses what could be a very interesting roster crunch if that happens. He also talks about the Drew Stubbs and David Murphy swap in right field last offseason, explains starting pitching depth and much more.

As sports salaries spiral out of control, and professional teams rack up the profits, the IBI's John Mast sees only one segment of the game taking the hit for the apparent success of a game that once was so accessible and meaningful. The fans. In his latest, John shares some thoughts on improving the relationship with the fans and bringing a generation back to the game.

According to a report in the Arizona Republic, the Indians and Diamondbacks have agreed to a trade where the Diamondbacks are sending right-handed pitcher Charles Brewer to the Indians for cash. The IBI's Tony Lastoria provides some quick thoughts on the trade, the reasoning behind it and who may be at risk of being removed from the roster.

The Indians made their annual offseason 40-man roster adds on Thursday adding five players from their player development system in advance of the midnight roster deadline. Here are the thoughts from the IBI's Tony Lastoria on the decisions the Indians made to add those five players, a look at why each was added, who they left off that they may be most at risk of losing in the Rule 5 Draft, and much more.

Nick Swisher is a big name going around the hot stove lately, with reports out that Cleveland could be looking to move the soon-to-be 34-year-old in a bad contract-for-bad contract swap. But while many seem ready to move on from Swisher, such a trade may be premature. Join Jim Piascik as he breaks down why the devil Cleveland knows in Swisher seems better than the ones they don’t on the trade market.

On Tuesday, Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports reported that the Indians are exploring a wide range of options on the trade market including a trade of Nick Swisher for another player with a bad contract.. This was not a surprising idea to the IBI's Jeff Ellis and he provides a few reasons why in his latest.

Available IBI Books

The 2014 Cleveland Indians Baseball Insider book featuring the Indians' Top 100 Prospects and more is now available. Also, previous editions from 2008-2012 are also available at a discounted rate. Just click on the book image for more information. Thanks again for all the support!